Hi. I have not been on the forums in a while. I am a firefighter/paramedic in the North Texas area, & have recently obtained my certifications to teach both fire & EMS. I would like to start teaching classes, but am not sure how to get started. My department is small & has limited training/teaching opportunities, & would like to move on to teach at the college/academy level. Have searched online for schools in my area that teach fire/EMS, but none are posting that they are looking for instructors. If anyone has been in my shoes before, I would greatly appreciate any advice on how to get my foot in the door. Thanks very much.

04-13-2005, 09:01 PM

torichardson

This may be a “no brainer” and you may have already thought about it or tried it , but I would recommend that you identify the locations/agencies that you are interested in and see if you can’t talk to some of their instructors and see how they “got their foot in the door”. I have taught at everything from a Vol Dept, to a State Academy, to the Private Sector and each one of them has had their own unique way of getting into the position. In some places; it is not “what you know” but “who you know”, it comes down to a civil service test and score, it comes down to being in the right place at the right time, and it may actually come down to your qualifications and experience. Some places will advertise to the outside and hire someone without having known anything about them until the application process, however this is pretty rare. Most places are going to hire someone; that has some type of history with the place such as having taken classes, has some type of connection to the place such as knowing an employee, or has a reputation/history that is known or recognized in the area. As I am sure you know, half of the battle is just trying to find an opening, where once again having some type of connections or inside track will pay off big time. Hope this helped at least some, if you have some specific questions email or post them.